Glossary

ADSL Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (a.k.a. a darn swift line)
Backing material for support between studs to provide a secure mounting surface.
Beams horizontal support members.
Blocking the material which is used to provide additional support particularly where adjustments are made such as in a threshold location.
Bulkhead material used to reserve an area such as space for a lowered threshold in formwork.
CHBA Canadian Home Builders’ Association.
Double Plate the doubling of the top or bottom plate. The bottom plate is doubled for skim coat type construction. The top plate is doubled when the wall is load bearing.
Forms the mould or frame which provides necessary shape especially for foundations.
Form Ties fastening devices placed in forms to ensure the concrete does not distend the form. These ties are removed at the same time as the forms.
Framing a type of construction also referred to as post and beam.
GFI Ground Fault Interrupt required electrical receptacle for outdoor and bathroom installation, assists greatly in reducing the opportunity for a shocking experience.
Guards those portions of a stairway which are pinned onto the wall faces.
Handrails those railings which must be 1″ inches from, and firmly mounted to, the wall.
Header see header joist.
Header Joist a vertical joist which the common joists are framed, around or above an opening. This usually consists of two or more boards being nailed together.
Infrared a control method employing infrared light.
ISDN Integrated Services Digital Network.
Joists horizontally placed parallel beams to which boards of a floor or laths of a ceiling are fastened. (See also header joist, rim joist, and tail joist)
Lintel a horizontal member which rests exclusively upon wall (or jack) studs. The wall studs must have full-length studs doubled with them extending from the bottom to top wall plates.
Low Voltage Network all pre-wiring of paired cabling which may be used for any number things. Rendezvous back at Node Zero.
Node Zero the place where all important electrical, cables, telephone wires, and low voltage networks come together.
Nosing that portion of the tread on a staircase which protrudes past the join of the riser and the tread.
Plate that member at either the top of bottom of a wall to which the vertical members are attached.
Pour Hole an access hole in a bulkhead through which concrete is delivered. This hole helps eliminate air pockets and ensures a proper and complete pour.
Pour Strips 1×1 strips of wood inside a form and used to provide an easy reference for the height the concrete must be poured to.
Radio Frequency a method of remote control which uses frequencies in the radio bands.
RESNA Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North America this organization promotes the adoption of Universal Design through a Special Interest Group (SIG: 19).
Ribbon Boards boards laid upon a foundation wall to keep the horizontal beams from making contact with the concrete.
Rim Joist a timber or other support for cross members in floors or ceilings. In stairs, the support on which the stair tread rests. (Also known as stringer joist)
Rise in a staircase, the vertical distance between the tops of successive treads.
Riser in a staircase, that piece rising vertically between treads of a step unit.
Run in a staircase, the horizontal distance from riser to riser or nosing to nosing of successive treads.
Saddle another term for the actual threshold plate often seen in commercial buildings.
Shim any material used to wedge or level two objects.
Sill a horizontal, lower member of a door or window casing.
Skim Coat a lightweight, concrete material poured on a sub-floor for soundproofing.
Slab On Grade a construction method using a floating slab surrounded by poured foundation walls.
Slope usually described as 1 in 12; or 1 in 50. This represents the amount of rise over the amount of run and is used in calculating the angle of slope.
Sole another term for the bottom plate in a wall whether load bearing or not.
Spec short for speculation or building without a specific buyer in mind.
Stringer a timber, generally horizontal, supporting other members of a structure.
Sub-Floor a second floor required beneath the finish flooring where that finish flooring does not have adequate strength to support the design loads.
Tail Joist a relatively short joist supported by a wall at one end and by a header at the other.
Threshold a plank, timber, member, or stone lying under any exterior entry to a building.
Top Plate two 2x4s or 2x6s, one on top of the other creating the top of the wall.
Tread in a staircase, that piece running horizontally between risers of a step unit.
Trimmer Joist a beam or joist to which a header is nailed during framing for a chimney, stairway, or other opening.
Ultra-Sonic a system of control relying upon high frequency signals.
Universal Design the principles which promote thoughtful planning and design at all stages of any design project.
Waste Pipe the pipe and trap allowing drainage of a sink, tub, or shower.
X-10 a power-line based carrier system for controlling electrical devices.